The wearing of a safety helmet is becoming mandatory in many construction industries. For instance, it is now mandatory to wear a safety helmet anywhere on site during construction of a high-rise building. Safety helmets are widely used throughout the industry and not just the construction industry. For instance, safety helmets are mandatory in many areas of the mining industry.
While there are various types of safety helmets, the helmets are typically manufactured from a hard plastic material. The inside portion of the helmet is provided with webbing straps which extend over the head of the user. At the rear of the helmet is an adjustment strap to allow the helmet to be properly fitted to the user.
With reference to the construction industry, the person wearing the safety helmet is often outside. During the hot summer months, the person can experience quite severe sunburn especially around the neck and face area. During rain, the current construction of the safety helmet does not particularly shield the person's face from rain.
It is well-known to provide some form of neck cloth or neck protecting member to protect against the sun. Sometimes, these cloths are attached to the helmet and this can be achieved using tape, elastic and the like. While this provides some relief from sunburn on the person's neck, the cloths are not suitable to protect the person's face.
It is also not advantageous (and may even be illegal) to modify the standard safety helmet by riveting or otherwise attaching lateral members to provide some relief from the sun. Also, it may be necessary to ensure that any such attachment has some form of release mechanism should the attachment become caught in machinery etc.
Therefore, there would be an advantage if it were possible to purchase an attachment for a safety helmet that does not require modification of the helmet itself which can be quite easily removed if not required or if caught by machinery, and which can provide sun protection.
It will be clearly understood that, if a prior art publication is referred to herein, this reference does not constitute an admission that the publication forms part of the common general knowledge in the art in Australia or in any other country.